Kilham, East Yorkshire
“Rev. Wm. Smith states that Hen-Pit-Hole gets its name because it is said to be haunted by a hen and chickens” Edna Whelan
In the village of Langtoft, between Driffield and Scarborough, there is a stone slab set into the wall of an old house. On this stone is an inscription explaining a devastating flood that took place in 1892 in which water, supposedly, rose to 7½ feet above street level. This caused the Toon Well, with a whopping depth of 126ft, to fill to the brim with debris. In 1923, Toon Well had pump installed.
Kilham, 3 miles from Langtoft, is home to Hen Pit Hole which is about midway between the two… Why am I telling you this? Well, when the Toon Well would flood, and the water would rise to the top, an impressive arch of water would shoot out of Hen Pit Hole supposedly large enough for those on horse-back to comfortably ride underneath without getting wet.
Impressive feat of science aside, how did Hen Pit Hole get its name? It seems to just be a very convenient flood defence, but ah… folklore can spring from anywhere!
Legend has it that one day, a man decided to throw a hen down Toon Well in Langtoft and the hen… miraculously… survived the 126ft drop (and subterranean water ways) and sprung out at Hen Pit Hole, 1 and a half miles away, relatively unscathed.
It is said that Hen Pit Hole is now haunted by the ghost of a Hen and her nine chicks. Perhaps because the hen went through such an ordeal navigating the depths of Kilham’s undergrowth… However, Rev. Wm. Smith seemed to believe that this hen haunting is instead linked to a water-goddess and her nymphs. He believed that perhaps the tale of the ghost hen and her chicks was actually a Christianized remnant of much older Celtic mythology and the ‘bird mother’ originally represented an ancient Celtic water goddess who once ruled over the subterranean springs of the Yorkshire Wolds.
Either way, if you’ve seen any spectral birds clucking around Kilham, be sure to let us know!
Sources
